Wonderland comes to Brockton Bay
by Smaugtheterrible
Summary: Annette Hebert used to read Alice in Wonderland to her daughter every night, and now instead of triggering with control over insects, she triggers with a fractured mind that brings wonder and insanity to Brockton Bay.
1. Chapter 1

_Wonderland comes to Brockton Bay_

 _"_ _This is Shadow Stalk- Oh shit! The Fuck was that?! I repeatq, this is Shadow Stalker, there is some sort of new trigger, the girl Taylor Hebert is some sort of Shaker, I don't know what the hell this is but I need backup now! Wait, what the fuck are you!? No! Get away you fucking cat!"_

Armsmaster clicked the recording off as both the Wards and a few members of the local Protectorate looked at him with a quizzical expression on their faces. The dour tinker sighed and began explaining.

"This call was received at approximately 8 am this morning, Shadow Stalker reported a new and hostile parahuman by the name of Taylor Hebert, I arrived on scene just under 18 minutes later to find a small number of students huddled in the parking lot."

Armsmaster gestured at a nearby parking lot where a half dozen students were huddled together. One odd boy however was taking almost, _wistful_ looks back towards the brick and mortar form of Winslow.

"After ascertaining their health and wellbeing I gathered what information I could, and then sent a remote viewer inside in order to gather information as too how far the suspect had been able to twist the environment. We lost contact after a few moments, but we were able to confirm that the inside of the school is habitable and that it has changed with extra sections and rooms popping up along with other spacial anomalies. We are here to ascertain the location of any survivors as well as dealing with Taylor Hebert, a provisional kill order has been authorized if she cannot be talked down. Questions?"

Aegis, the leader of the wards spoke up.

"What are her rankings?"

"Current ranking is Shaker 8. Any other questions?"

No other questions came up, so Armsmaster shouldered his Halberd.

"Alright then, Wards, you are under Miss Milita's command for the duration, Protectorate members with me. Lets go."

And with that, they entered Winslow.

The hero blinked slightly as they entered into a simple hallway that ended in a intersection. In the middle of it stood a sign post. On it were three signs pointing off In different directions. An arrow that pointed off to the left read 'sanewards', a wooden hand that read 'towards justice' and a final sign that bended and twisted in angles and shapes that made the eyes water before spiraling into a spike that protruded towards the central hallway with the letters 'insanity' all along the side.

The hero approached the intersection warily, and then stopped as a something appeared in a puff of purple and black smoke.

As it cleared, it revealed a girl dressed in a simple purple and black striped dress and tights, her black hair falling messily to the small of her back. What wasn't simple was the black and purple tail or extra set of cat ears coming off the top of her head.

The cat girl noticed the staring heroes and waved cheerily at them, her yellow yellow eyes glinting.

"Hello ladies and gentlefolk! I am Cheshire, now who are all of you?"

Armsmaster stepped forward, his halberd in one hand.

"Are you Taylor Hebert? I ask because your facial structure is a 90% match for hers."

Cheshire giggled.

"I suppose I am in a matter of speaking, but there are a lot of Taylors around here if you get my meaning."

Armsmaster scowled.

"I don't. Explain."

Cheshire laughed outright, and then did something that shocked the watching heroes, the cat girl calmly lifted her head off her shoulder, and then began juggling it, still laughing.

"Oh calm do calm down! No need to loose your head after all! What would you like to know?"

Armsmaster turned to look at Miss Milita who shrugged, he turned back to Cheshire who was still juggling her giggling head around.

"What do you mean you are Taylor Hebert in a matter of speaking?"

Cheshire smoothly paced her head back on top her body before speaking, her legs calmly swinging as she sat on top of the sign post.

"Its quite simple really. Taylor had a rather _bad_ day." Cheshire's eyes seemed to glow a lambent yellow for a moment as she spoke. "And so in order to save her, Wonderland came to her, and now she has been split into many different Taylors."

Armsmaster frowned. That sounded like a trigger event, an especially bad one if what he understood from this Taylor was right, it had been bad enough to somehow split the original Taylor's body or personality.

"How many are there?"

Cheshire thought about it for a moment before she started counting them off on her fingers.

"The Mad Hatter and the March Hare, The Walrus and the Carpenter, The Tweedles, The White Rabbit, The caterpillar, and the Red and White queens respectively."

Armsmasters eyebrow rose.

"Not you?"

Cheshire shrugged as she burst out laughing. After a few moments of bright laughter, Armsmaster asked another question.

"And where are the students?"

Cheshire jumped up, standing up on the narrow pole that made up the sight post and pointed in either direction, and then showed her casual disregard for the laws of nature yet again as another hand sprouted from her back and pointed behind her.

"They are in every direction, some at tea parties, some in captivity, some at the run, and some in the army."

"And where is Shadow Stalker?"

Cheshire froze, her smile frozen on her face, her tail frozen behind her, she finally hissed at the heroes.

"Of **course** she would be your priority wouldn't she?"

And a purple and black all of smoke suddenly consumed the Heroes, sending them each elsewhere.


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter two_

 _Armsmaster, the Walrus, and the Carpenter_

Armsmaster, hero, and leader of the local Protectorate woke up with a groan, and leaned up, arms on his knees, he looked around to find himself on a beech, sand towards the left and right, and woods behind them, his halberd no where in sight.

"This is quite the interesting piece of technology you have here. Its miniaturization aspects are fascinating."

Armsmaster whirled around too see another Taylor, this time with short red hair, wearing a white apron and hat, sitting at a wooden table, prodding at Armsmaster's halberd with a simple hammer.

"I assume you are the carpenter?"

The red headed Taylor smiled.

"Just Carpenter if you please."

Armsmaster looked around intently.

"If this follows the story of Alice in Wonderland, where is the Walrus?"

Carpenter gestured towards Armsmaster with her hammer.

"She's right behind you."

Armsmaster turned to see a second Taylor that Armsmaster would have sworn, again, hadn't been there just a second before, with long brown hair, and wearing a patched blue coat and brown pants, with two long ivory tusks jutting down from her upper jaw. Beside the Walrus Taylor lay a bound and gagged girl wrapped in a blue blanket with the letters 'oyster girl' stamped on her forehead in black ink, and a small metal circle stuck to the side of her head. Armsmaster raised one eyebrow.

"And who is 'oyster girl'?"

Walrus shrugged, but Carpenter snickered as she gestured towards the bound girl with her hammer who squealed as she tried to scoot away.

"Oh little oyster over there? She happens to be one third of terrible trio. Her name is Emma Barnes, and she used to be one of dear Alice's closest friends until she betrayed her."

Carpenter leaned forward and gestured at the metal disk on the side of Emma's with her hammer.

"And now, as long as that metal disk is on her temple, she gets to experience _exactly_ what she did to our precious Alice."

Armsmaster stepped closer to Emma and crouched down, cautiously probing the metal disk set into the squealing, mumbling Emma's temple.

"And I would assume that your Alice is the original Taylor?"

Both the Walrus and the Carpenter smiled and nodded, Armsmaster sat back in contemplation, his mind running over the possibilities, he leaned back, away from the still mumbling and shouting girl.

He stood up and turned back to regard the Walrus and the Carpenter.

"What can I do to so that you will release the other students?"

Armsmaster pointedly avoided saying prisoners. The Carpenter seemed to think it over for a few seconds before the red head smiled.

"Kill me."

"Wait, what?"

"Kill me. The only way for the personalities to snap back to Alice is for the Heroes to kill us."

Armsmaster hefted his halberd.

"Do you plan to just let me kill you?"

The Carpenter nodded.

"Once I and Walrus are dead, our space will go back to normal, the students that we have will be turned back to normal, and all you will have to do, is remove the tech from her temple, and she in turn shall recover. All I ask is for one thing in return."

"And that is?"

"Make sure they don't get away with this?"

Collin gave a rare, sad, smile.

"You have my word."

And then Armsmaster shoved his halberd through the Carpenter's stomach, and then he turned to the Walrus who just nodded sadly before the hero stabbed her in the chest.

And as the beach slowly faded into white tiles, and students sprouted from small objects on the ground, like flowers from the earth, Colin stared at his hands.

And even as those students mobbed him, screaming exaltations of relief and thanks, Colin didn't feel like much of a hero.

Colin didn't notice the Walrus and the Carpenter's bodies slowly fading away, and the glint of yellow eyes and a crescent moon smile, bobbing happily in the corner of the room.


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter three_

 _Aegis, Clockblocker, The March Hare, and the Mad Hatte r_

Aegis, leader of the wards came to in a groan, he found himself in a white room, sitting in a wooden chair with peeling white paint, sitting at one end of a series of tables, some plastic, some wood, some bone, and stacked on top of each of the tables were dishes, saucers, and teapots filled with still steaming tea. Aegis looked to he right and saw Clockblocker blearily rubbing his eyes, gloved hands reaching underneath his helmet.

Down the table sat two girls who looked like Taylor Hebert.. The first was dressed in a green waistcoat and large oversized green felt hat with a black band around the side. She had a shock of white hair, and green eyes that sparked unsettlingly, she was engaged in rapt conversation with another Taylor look alike who wore a red suit suit coat and pants, with a pair of brown bunny ears sitting on top of her head.

The two wards looked at each other, obviously confused before they jumped, letting loose an involuntary half scream, half yell of surprise as the Taylor in a hat suddenly appeared in-between the two wards with a tea pot and a pair of small cups.

"Why hello! I'm the Mad Hatter," Mad Hatter gestured towards the end of the table where the rabbit eared Taylor was juggling tea saucers and giggling inanely. "That is the March Hare." Mad Hatter abruptly ducked as the March hare slung a saucer through the air that embedded itself in far wall of the room, quivering slightly. Mad hatter, Aegis, and Clockblocker all turned to look at the March hare who froze for a moment before breaking down in laughter, her rabbit ears twitching.

The Mad Hatter sighed and turned back into wards who were staring at the Mad Hatter with looks of intense discomfort. Mad Hatter frowned, and poured them both a cup of tea, before throwing the still full tea pot, and then the reaching one hand into her oversized green felt top hat and withdrawing a black teacup from its depths and sipping from the full cup cautiously.

The Mad Hatter released a sigh of contentment before he finally turned too the two wards and asked them with a smile.

"So what can I do for two strapping young lads such as yourself?"

Aegis looked at Clockblocker who shrugged before he turned back to the Hatter who was drinking with a pleased expression from her back teacup… Were those little skulls around the lip of the cup? Aegis made a mental note never to drink any of Mad Hatters tea.

"I was hoping that I could request the release of any hostages, and the negation of whatever power you are using that is affecting Winslow."

The March hare stopped, and then slapped a purple and black striped tea pot that rattled briefly. The rabbit eared Taylor glared at the pot like it was her greatest, and most terrible foe. The Hatter just sighed.

"I am dearly sorry, but this is more complicated then you know. Cheshire told you about our split personalities correct?"

Aegis nodded.

"Do you know how many there are?"

"Cheshire said that including you, ten."

Mad Hatter shook her head with an exasperated look on her face.

"Count on the damn cat to only tell only part of the truth. What Cheshire told you was technically true, but she left a few parts out. The first is that there is an 11th aspect, our Dark Alice. She is the body of the original, with all other emotion, or feeling taken out other then absolute, sheer, unbridled hatred. The rest of us are merely projections of Taylors personality that take on different powers and personalities to reflect the classic Alice in Wonderland tales."

Clockblocker cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Umm, not to be rude or anything, but, you really don't seem all crazy and stuff like you're supposed to be according to the books."

Mad Hatter shrugged.

"Well, let me put it this way, I am less the insanity of Taylor mind, and more her happiness. Also, is it not insanity to act sane, when everyone else is insane?"

Clockblocker sat back as he considered the point, Aegis on the other hand leaned forward.

"So if you represent happiness, what do the other aspects represent?"

The Mad Hatter began ticking them off one by one on her long fingers.

"The Carpenter was what represented Ingenuity. The Walrus was stoicism, the wherewithal to wether anything. Hare over there." Hatter snickered briefly before she continued. "Hare, represents insanity and overindulgence. The two Tweedles represent loyalty, unswerving and absolute. The White Rabbit represents Taylors cowardice and memory, wavering and forever. The White queen is our dear Alice's hope, kindness, and forgiveness. The Red queen on the other hand is Taylors rage, anger, sadness, and depression. The Cheshire Cat, quite frankly is a mystery to us, no one knows what she actually represents. Finally, the Caterpillar is Taylors foresight, her preparedness."

The Mad Hatter looked at Aegis who had raised an eyebrow.

"So how do we get all of Taylors personalities back into her?"

"You have to kill all of us."

The March hare looked up, a snarl in her face. She spat in the Hatters direction before viciously shaking the purple and black teapot, slamming it a few times against the table. Aegis and Clockblocker traded another look with each other before the leader of the Wards turned back to the Mad Hatter.

"Run that by me one more time?"

"You have to kill us. If one of Taylors personalties kills another aspect, then that emotion, that piece of Taylors personality is gone forever. But if someone other then that manages to kill one of us, then the personality is absorbed back into her sense of self as a whole. Once everyone of us is absorbed back into the whole, Taylor's personality should essentially reset back to factory settings. All trauma sustained thus far will be like its never happened."

The March hare, her mouth puckered, her eye twitching picked up the Purple and Black teapot, and hurled it so fast that it literally screamed through the air. Mad Hatter just calmly raised one hand and caught the teapot, and placed it softly back on the table. Whatever that was in the pot screaming and hissing.

Clockblocker looked at the teapot.

"What the hell is in the teapot?"

" _Why Shada'Stalker o' course!"_

Aegis blinked as the March hare sprung up upon the table, screaming in a thick Scottish burr.

And then blinked again as he realized what exactly the March hare had just said. He turned and nodded to Clockblocker, who nodded back and placed one hand on the Hatter and tried to stop the Hatter's time.

The Hatter just blinked briefly before she smiled and pulled out a cracked pocket watch, the shattered glass face had been stopped a six o'clock.

"You just tried to stop my time didn't you? Im sorry to say, but that power doesn't work on me. My times already been stopped at 6 o'clock. If you want Shadow Stalker back, you're going to have to kill me."

Aegis paused.

"Why do you have Shadow Stalker?"

The Mad Hatter cocked her head.

"Did no one ever tell you? She, Emma, and Madison, were all the cause of my dear Alice's trigger event."

Aegis tried again.

"I understand your rage, but please don't take it out on the rest of the students."

The Mad Hatter laughed, long, bright, and sharp, she turned to the March hare.

"If I am not dead in the next minute, kill Shadow Stalker."

The March hare grinned, and nodded madly and the Hatter turned back to Aegis and Clockblocker.

"Thats the thing Aegis. Im not taking it out on anyone else. As long as I am alive, Alice's shaker abilities will broadcast through me, and the changes we've made to both Shadowstalker and the students will all fade away. But if you do not, then they will remain that way forever."

Aegis, stepped forward, hand held out to his side.

"20 seconds hero."

"Pleas-"

"15 seconds."

"Stop this!"

"5 seconds."

"There must be another way!"

The Mad Hatter just shook her head and turned to the March hare who grinned.

"Do it."

The March hare raised one hand, pointing it like an arrow.

"NO!" Aegis screamed as he leapt forward, fist cocked as he aimed for her chest, but as he did, the Hatter grinned, and bowed, placing her head in its path.

Aegis' fist impacted in a spray of blood and brain.

He barely had time to stare in shock at his blood stained hands before he was fighting a furious, but still smiling, sending flurries of punches and kicks at her head. The March hare cocked a fist back that glowed slightly, Aegis panicked, and then low and behold, his fist embedded itself into the March hares stomach.

The rabbit eared girl smiled, blood dribbling down from her lips and teeth.

"I din'a blame you fer this. I swore to follow the Hatter through this, no matter wha. And while I might not agree with my existence ending, I do'n think our Alice should stop. So promise me, finish saving her. Please."

The March hare then slid wetly off of Aegis' arm falling to the ground in a heap. The purple and black teapot shattered as a mouselike Shadowstalker slowly enlarged and became human. The vigilante looked around her blearily before focusing on Aegis.

"What the fuc-"

And then was launched backwards with a shattered jaw as Aegis slapped the black teen, and as the room faded away, frozen students who suddenly collapsed as time resumed.

Aegis shouldered past Clockblocker as he walked past the other ward, and toward the inner sections of Winslow, and expression of absolute determination on his face.


	4. Chapter 4

_Chapter four_

 _The Blue Caterpillar and Miss Militia_

Miss Militia nodded and made affirmative noises and the com link in her ear buzzed, a signal through relays had managed to reach her communicator, a signal that detailed just how screwed up the situation was, apparently Taylor Heberts personality fragments were slowly turning more aggressive.

At first, the reported fragments were peaceful, but they have slowly become more and more violent, the fragments so far were trying to force a fight, but it sounded like they were slowly becoming more resistant to the idea of rejoining Taylors personality as a whole. Militia idly wondered why as she emerged into a clearing and was taken aback by the sight that lay before her.

A grassy clearing that was dominated by a cluster of mushrooms of various sizes

Resting on a medium sized mushroom, the size of a small truck, was a Taylor dressed in a blue, almost armored dress, with panels of a blue chitin somehow appearing out of the fabric at a regular interval lending an overall insectile appearance.

A light, almost electric blue hair fell to her where one hand combed slim fingers through her hair, while the other hand cradled a white pipe with gold inlay, its tip weaving a lackadaisical pattern through the air.

The blue haired Taylor paused her motions and turned to look at Miss Militia, her dark grey eyes sparkling with interest, she placed the tip of her pipe against in her lips and made a come hither gesture with her now free hand.

"Come out, come out Miss Militia. I know you're there."

The middle Eastern hero stepped out the concealing foliage and noticed something odd about this Taylor's legs, they seemed almost, _withered,_ and yet were still whole, smooth, and with a decent musculature that terminated in bare feet, tipped with blue painted nails. This Taylor idly nodded at Miss Militia as she continued puffing on her pipe, grey smoke slipping from its tip and out her nose, and twining up to slowly fad away in the air.

"Hello Miss Militia. I am the Blue Caterpillar, call me Blue."

Militia nodded cautiously, her ever present weapon shifting forms in a a flare of green light from a small pistol, to an semi-automatic, to a wicked looking rifle, and back again.

Blue looked at the hero, taking in her scratched and torn clothing, her warm brown eyes, and the rather serious looking gun the heroes fingers were tapping out a drum beat upon. Blue hummed in amusement.

"Hmmm, you seem to be rather stressed, might I ask why?"

Miss Militia held back a scoff at the inane question.

"You and the other facets of Taylors power are holding prisoners, most of which had nothing to do with her trigger, I am also facing an opponent with unknown powers, and if the indications of the others are any basis of which to decide what my confrontation with you will be like, then you will most likely be a more intense fight then the last few were for the others."

Blue smiled sadly and nodded.

"Correct. The facets of Taylors personality are rather divided, myself included, on whether not `we should rejoin the whole. Some wish whole heartedly to rejoin, to endure, and to assist the original with their powers. Others desire to remain free, and to protect her body, never letting her wake and never letting anyone else force our Alice to face such a rather cruel reality. And then there is one, one that wishes to remain living, not for Alice, not for others, but not even for themselves, but for nothing other then to cause destruction."

"And which one are you?"

Blue took in one long, pleasure filled inhale from her pipe, before blowing out a single smoke ring that floated out and towards Miss Militia.

"I… I am undecided. The issue is that while I do not which for my darling Alice to be harmed, in any way, and yet at the same time I do not want her to be forced to sleep for eternity."

There was a pause as Blue breathed out another elegant smoke ring.

"Do you know what my power is?"

Militia, slightly taken aback by the sudden change in topic shook her head.

"I do not."

"My powers are, well, I suppose you could call them prophetic. They are a combination up an almost supernatural understanding of human behavior, and a view of the future paths of actions."

"So why aren't you decided already? Shouldn't you know whats going to happen?"

Blue shook her head.

"My power is less specific then you think. Take flipping a coin. What do you think happens when you flip a coin?"

Miss Militia shook her head slightly.

"I'd imagine you get head or tails."

Blue smiled ruefully.

"You'd think that wouldn't you? But no, Instead of heads or tails, I get heads, tails, side. I get location, how far it bounces, how many times it bounces. Hell I get wether or not it gets stuck in a crack in the wall. I get hundreds, if not thousands of options, even for such a simple option such as that. But with my thinker power, I am capable of combing through the options in moments, and then selecting the most likely, however, I'm still left with a huge amount of possibilities. Many of which are just as likely as any other."

Miss Militia leaned back in consideration. That was a fair drawback, and It led Miss Militia to wonder why there weren't more powers to see the future like this one. Militia refocused as Blue continued speaking.

"So, in other words, since there are two main branches of life open to Taylor after the conclusion of are either good, or terrible. And so I organized this to test you, and how you will treat Taylor, in essence to get a better hold on your personalities and how they'll interact with, and treat the original."

Militia only really cottoned onto the what part of that statement.

The Test. Blue had even said it with a capital letter. Militia slid her gun up slowly and cocked the trigger.

"What do you mean tests?"

The smile that came over Blues face was saddened, and yet eager.

"Just this."

And then Blue _breathed_ , sending out billows of smoke that wrapped around Militia that entangled and grasped at the hero, choking her, just before Miss Militia lost conciseness, she heard Blue speak.

"I forgot to mention the last bit of my power, the smoke that I exude is a powerful drug that essentially forces you to relive your worst nightmare, over and over, and over. Have a fun trip!"

Blue sighed as Militia finally succumbed.

"I hope for Alice's sake that this works…"

 _Hours later…_

With a scream Hannah jumped up her powers shifting and forming into an old, broken down Kalashnikov that was trained unerringly on Blues reclining form, who upon seeing the hero awake merely smiled genially.

"So, your awake. Are you still sane? After all, If I'm correct you just suffered through at least a dozen repeats of your trigger event."

Hannah pointed the barrel at Blue and breathed out harshly from between clenched lips.

" _Why… In_ ** _GODS_** _name… Did you do that?"_

Blue shrugged as she took in another breath of smoke from her pipe.

"I told you. A test. Now. Do you intend to kill me? You have to if you need to get the hostages back."

Hannah couldn't hold back a snarl as the barrel twitched. The smirk on the face of the girl who had just forced her to relive the worst moment of her life.

 **Repeatedly.**

And had the gall to smile about it.

The automatic rifle bucked as it spat out a spray of bullets the buried themselves into Blues form.

And as the mushroom filled glade dissolved around the hero, revealing a number of unconscious students and staff, Miss Militia breathed in deeply, and then mentally shrugged.

Blue had said that she would have to kill her in order to release the hostages. That was absolutely why she had shot the teen.

Absolutely.

And in one corner of the room, a set of lambent yellow eyes, floating over a terrifyingly wide smile floated, pleased with the progress of the so called heroes, slowly faded away like the morning mist.


	5. The Queen war Prt1

_Vista and the Red Queen, Kid Win and the White Queen_

 _Vista_

Vista came to with a scream that she would later adamantly declare was mature and not shrill enough to qualify as a separate power. She looked around herself wildly, her eyes surveying the richly appointed room she as in, its walls a dark stone, with mosaics of what looked like cards featuring prominently, and in the center of the room, a massive golden throne with red velvet cushions.

Vista blinked, relaxing nonchalantly on the throne was a mature looking teen dressed in what looked like a mixture to of ebony colored plate mail, and elegant red dress. The older teen looked at the costumed Ward with an interested but dismissive expression.

And when she spoke, her cold, aristocratic voice echoed around the vast, empty room.

"Hello Vista. I am the Red Queen, and I brought you to my section of Alice's world…".

The Red Queen's face soured as she managed to choke out the rest of her sentence, her royal displeasure _obvious._

"… Because, I need your _help."_

She finished her sentence like the word help was a dirty word, and then glared at Vista until she responded, hesitantly and rather unsure as to why she should help an aspect of a volatile Parahuman do anything.

"Well, Red Queen, what exactly do you need my help _with?_ "

The Red Queen sighed and rubbed her temples irritably.

"Hmmph, it is torture listening to you attempt to say my full name, and since you are not and will never become one of my subjects," The Red Queen paused to roll her eyes, as if to say, _'thank god for that'_ before continuing. "You will merely refer to me as Red, or Miss Queen. Clear?"

Red waited for Vista's skeptical nod before continuing, suddenly sounding depressed and broken down as she spoke.

"The reason I need your… _help,_ is because my counterpart, the White Queen who represents Taylors kindness, wishes to kill me herself, and thereby remove Taylors from her overall personality."

Vista's eyebrow rose underneath her mask. One part of Taylors personality wanted to kill the other? That sounded rather unlikely, and almost suicidal, and she said so.

Vocally.

And repeatedly.

Finally Red suddenly held up one hand, her face puckered like she had just bitten into a rotten lemon, her lips quivering with rage did her best to avoid

"There is a reason why I believe she wishes my death, is because she's been corrupted by the Dark Alice, Taylor's original body. We personality fragments each have abilities, for instance I have can call on my deck of cards, and the White Queen has her chessmen, but the Dark Alice has a power that utterly terrifies me."

Vista swallowed dryly as Red placed one hand on top of the other to shop its nervous shaking.

"The Dark Alice is able to _twist_ the minds of her enemies, make them hate or be hated with nothing more then a twitch of her finger."

"AND WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO ABOUT THAT?!"

Vista finally screamed, loosing her temper and her patience, she stopped immediately when The Red Queen rose to her feet, a massive axe seemingly popping into existence in her hands, and golems in the shape of cards melted out from the walls, bearing long, heart tipped spears.

" **You will NOT raise your voice to me in my own castle.** "

Suddenly the Red Queen quieted, and sat down her throne with a sigh, and what sounded like a sob, spoke haltingly.

"O-otherwise, y-you might make me cry…"

Vista blink and the rapid change between angry, zero reaction, and absolute crushing depression. The Red Queen did not seem… _Overly_ stable. Finally Vista managed to wrench out a question from between open jaws and slack lips.

"But why on earth have you brought me here? Why does it matter if you or the White Queen who kills who? And why have you even brought me here?"

And the Red Queen explained, Vista's face became further and further dismayed.

 _Kid Win_

Kid Win awoke, swaddled in pure, almost glistening white blankets. He felt, almost, _suffocated_ in them, he sat up, and then fell in love, he beheld the most beautiful person he had ever seen, asleep in a chair next to the door, her white hair falling around her face, shifting slightly as she breathed in and out, her lips like plump blueberries.

She took one long deep breath in, and seemed to stretch herself awake, her long slim limbs rolling up a dancers body, working out the kinks the result of an uneasy sleep. When she saw that he was awake, the _smile_ that she gave him, well, if he wasn't already in love, he would've been right then. The woman spoke, and Kid had to strain to actually understand what she was saying, a feeling of contentment spreading through him, he nodded his head absently as she spoke, not really _understanding_ what she was saying, but agreeing nevertheless.

Finally he shook himself as she smiled, a little bemused at his dumbstruck expression.

"Well, aren't you going to get to work?"

"On what?"

The smile that she gave him was pitying, and yet loving, almost like a dog owner finding out that their puppy had pissed in the corner.

"Why, on the weapons to kill the bloody red queen of course."

 _Scene Break_

The armies of the Red and White queens began their marches to the battleground, a massive chess-board of white and black marble that had taken the place of what had been the cafeteria. On the side of the Red Queen were 52 card soldiers, Vista, the space warping heroine, and the Bloody Red Queen herself, clad in crimson red armor and bearing a humongous, double headed war axe.

Across the battlefield marshaled the armies of the White Queen, 32 chess pieces armed and outfitted by Kid Win, and leading them was the White Queen, a beauteous smile affixed to her face, white armor at her shoulders, and a slim rapier at her hip.

The armies faced each other and the two rulers saluted each other from across the battlefield, the time for talking long since over, and so they charged, soldiers, heroes, and rulers, they came together in a mighty clash that shook the very ground upon they stood.

And far to one side, Cheshire, standing next to a Taylor in a crimson waistcoat with bunny ears, and a pair of identical Taylors with red suspenders and beanies, all four Taylors are frowning, at what, was unclear.

Cheshire turned to the other three Taylors, they nodded, and vanished in a swirl of purple smoke.


	6. Chapter 6

_Interlude_

 _Conversation of Opposites_

In a simple room, a table with two chairs sat in a small pool of light the rest of the room dominated by shadows.

In unison, two Taylor's stepped forward from the shadows and towards the table.

One Taylor, was clean, dressed in a blue dress with a white apron, and long, straight brown hair, but her _eyes_ , her eyes were like hollowed pits from which glared eyes like chip of ebony, her features cold and aristocratic, like she had been hewn from marble. She sat at one chair, primly rearranging her skirt before staring at Taylor.

The other Taylor on the other hand would not have looked out of place amongst the homeless of Brockton Bay. She was smeared with filth, grime, and blood, but unlike the other Taylor, she seemed far more… _human_. Her eyes had a spark of life that attracted attention to her light blue eyes, she was wearing a trio of layers, ripped clothing showing more dirt, more grime, more clothing. She gave a nod to the clean Taylor before sitting in the chair opposite.

Their was a long silence before finally the Taylor in the blue dress spoke, her voice short and clipped.

"You realize, so far every single one of them has failed the test right?"

The grimy Taylor shrugged.

"Yeah. But remember. As long as one manages to pass the test, I win."

The Taylor in the blue dress scoffed.

"Really? So far every single hero, arguably the greatest of the Protectorate have all failed, and you still have the confidence to think you might win? You will lose, and you will _be_ ** _mine._** "

The other Taylor just smiled, her white teeth poking pasted dirt stained lips.

"If your so certain of your victory, then why are you becoming so defensive?"

The Taylor in the blue dress twitched, before her emotionless face creased into a snarl.

"I changed my mind. When I win, I will **erase** you."

The more human of the two just smiled and leaned back. Cheshire walked out from the darkness and bowed to the other two at the table.

"Well my ladies, the climax is coming, all the bets are in, and this is the last opportunity for you to pull out or change them."

When neither Taylor so much as twitched, Cheshire straightened, her arms held wide, and a just touch-inhuman smile.

"Very well then, the battle is joined, the stakes are existence, and the battlefield is the character and value of heroes. To the victor goes the prize of continued existence, and the control of the powers of Wonderland. The loser will cease to exist."

Both Taylors at the table stood, and bowed to each other, before turning and bowing to Cheshire, before walking back towards the shadows.

Cheshire waited until both Taylors were gone before throwing a last comment over one shoulder.

"Only one hero need pass the test, but if none manage to win, then Dark Alice will win, and that… That would be a terrible thing for the rest of the world."

Cheshire's head turned around with an audible crack to expose a Sharklike grin that stretched from ear to ear, razor sharp, triangle shaped teeth, but for ripping, tearing, and crunching on full display.

"But wouldn't it be fun to watch?"

And with that, Cheshire walked away.


	7. Chapter 7

_Velocity and The White Rabbit_

Velocity came to a stop, panting, he had spent the last four hours after being separated from the rest of his team searching through the frankly weird man sized den filled with twisting and interconnecting tunnels , and he hadn't seen hide or hare of anyone or anything during that time.

As the Cape slowly got his breath back, he heard a high pitched, almost cartoon like voice with forced politeness that almost reminded him of a old cartoon he had once watched about a butler.

"Are you _quite_ done running about my domicile?"

Velocity turned around to see another Taylor, this one, rather then the purple and black striped Cheshire, was clad in a bright crimson waistcoat and black pants with red piping. What really drew Velocities eye was the bright white bunny ears sticking off the top of her head, _real_ ears. They were twitching slightly and everything.

What was more disturbing, if equally eye drawing as the bunny ears, was the golden pocket watch the size of Velocities' that she was swinging around.

Were… Were those _blood stains?_

They were. Alongside edges of the ridiculously oversized pocket watch were bloodstains, as though the watch had been used as a blunt instrument. That impression was violently reinforced when the White Rabbit Taylor swung the watch for his head, he managed to dodge despite he fact that the Rabbit had some form of super speed almost equaled his, but could hit way harder then he could at high speeds.

The fight stopped for a moment as the White Rabbit wound down for a brief moment and gestured towards the surrounding tunnel structures.

"In these tunnels are 10 people, lost, alone, and hungry find them before I manage to kill you, if you can do that, you can keep them. But for every time I hit you, one of them will disappear, and become irretrievable. Good luck."

And with that, the Gold Pocket Watch blurred into motion again, striking out and leaving in a crater in the wall next to Velocities head as the hero turned to run and search for survivors.

Velocity dodged strike, after strike and slowly outpaced the other speedster.

After what seemed like an eternity of strike, doge, strike, Velocity finally heard the sounds of someone screaming, so he followed it, not daring to look back since he could hear the sounds of the other speedster behind him.

He sped into the warren, and finally found the first hostage, a girl, tied up, she started crying as soon as she saw the hero, and then sobbing and screaming, thrashing wildly as soon as she saw the frankly _vicious_ rabbit eared girl behind him, he swore, and grabbed for the hostage, but stumbled as she disappeared in a shimmer of light.

The White Rabbit took advantage of the hero's misstep and managed to tag him with a glancing blow.

"Thats one hostage you now will never rescue hero!" She called out as she continued following the now injured hero, "Only eight left!"

Velocity blurred, again slowly outpacing his pursuer, again he raced through the tunnels until he heard more crying, this time the hostage was a skinny, slightly gawky teenage boy with glasses and a star wars shirt. His tears paused for a moments as he saw the hero, and then he paled and began screaming he was sorry as soon as he saw who was pursuing him. This time, the rabbit managed to get in between Velocity and the hostage by actually running along the _ceiling_ of the tunnels before dropping down in front of the speedster, oversized pocket watch scything through the air, forcing Velocity to dive underneath the chain and skid to stop as the White Rabbit snarled.

"If you think I am going to let you rescue that **_coward_** out of all people you have another thing coming, this one is _mine_ to deal with _."_

Velocity stopped and gave the White Rabbit an evaluating look, her breath was coming in hard and fast, her fingers white knuckled around the gold colored chains of her pocket watch, her smooth white ears twitching with repressed emotion.

"Why is he so important to you? Why do you call him coward?"

The Rabbit scoffed as the boy shivered and continued muttering broken, crazed apologies.

"This lily-livered fool, called himself a friend, he felt-"

Here the rabbit made a disgusted face.

"He felt _sexual attraction_ towards our Alice."

The Rabbit turned around and spat in the hostages direction.

"Like _Veder_ of all people would have stood a chance with our Alice, _especially_ when he ignored what what was happening to her."

Velocity took the opportunity of the Rabbits distraction and _moved,_ lunging for the hostage with every ounce of speed he was physically capable of, muscles straining, joints screaming.

But then the great, golden, bloodstained pocket watch was headed towards the screaming hostages head, leaving Velocity with two choices.

Try and attack the White Rabbit, and hopefully force the pocket watch to miss the hostage.

Or…

Take blow that was able to fracture the stone walls of the tunnels.

In the ends, for Robin Swoyer, military veteran and now hero of the Protectorate, there really was no question.

Robin took the blow, and felt his arm, and most of his ribs _shatter._

And as the hero fell, at the far end of the tunnel, Cheshire frowned.

' _that was_ ** _not_** _the way it was supposed to go'_


	8. Chapter 8

_Triumph, the Tweedles and the Cheshire Cat_

Triumph was wandering around an old hamlet, complete with cobbled streets and a blue sky, he didn't know how long he had been wandering, or if he was even still Brockton anymore. Occasionally he would glimpse movement down an alley or through a window, but whenever he went to investigate the empty houses, or rushed down side streets, he would find them empty.

He was going _mad_ ….

He waved at another shadow and giggled to himself as it sped away.

And then he shrieked when he heard a pair of delicate coughs behind him.

He whirled to see a pair of Taylor dressed in bright scarlet pants with suspenders and redcaps, that seemed almost… Sticky in the light. The two Taylors were grasping each others hands and cocked their heads before shrugging in unison and turning around a nearby corner.

Triumph dashed after them, but the twins had disappeared. Triumph _screamed_ , he screamed, and wailed, and shouted, his voice shaking the very houses around him, shattering windows, and caving in walls and shattering doors.

But then he stopped. He gagged and coughed, a few small wisps of purple-pink smoke escaping. He felt his knees hit the cobbles as he coughed up more of the strange smoke. As the darkness closed in he could hear a faint whisper, and what felt like a gentle hand caressing his cheek.

 _'_ _Worry not little hero, I mean you no harm, I merely need to even the odds a little…'_

With that, Triumph lost conciseness.

A short while later, a catlike Taylor swirled into existence.

She took one look at the unmoving hero, her eye glowing, and then grinned. And then the same smoke poured out from her sleeves and swallowed up Triumph, and when it dissipated, both Cheshire and Triumph had disappeared.

The two tweedles wandered back out after the last of the smoke had dissipated, and the smirked.

However, there expressions of glee rapidly faded as they heard sining, and sound of metal being dragged along cobble stone.

They turned, and there, in all her perfect, corrupted, dark, and terrifying glory was Dark Alice, a beautiful smile on her face, and a bloodstained cleaver in one hand.

She cocked her head, blond hair falling around her shoulders like a rain of molten gold.

"Why hello my precious Tweedles, wherever did you go? Its almost like you built this labyrinth to avoid _me._ "

Her smile melted away, leaving nothing but a blank, porcelain mask.

"But **that** can't be true now can it?"

The tweedle-Taylors swallowed, and turned to run, but, they were too slow, as the Dark Alice accelerated forward, easily plunging her knife into the back of the first Tweedle as she continued to speak, her still expressionless face flecked with blood.

"Because if it was true, then I would be **angry.** And none of want that, _do_ ** _we?_** "


	9. End game prt 1

_Assault, Battery, Cheshire, and Alice_

Assault glanced at Battery who was beginning to flag, and slow.

"Whats wrong puppy? I told you, you shouldn't be eating all this donuts."

He grinned his wife growled at him. What? He liked teasing his wife, and they had been walking through this corridor, with out any contact from anyone else, or any contact over the radio.

The hallway that they had ended up walking down was a normal school hallway, with a few small exceptions, Assault hadn't encountered any school hallway that went on continuously for miles, with noting but tiled floors and walls with countless lockers. It at first had been subtle, and then blatantly odd and a little creepy, but now it was just tiring.

And of course, that was when every locker within sight began slamming open and shut furiously in a chorus of slamming, shrieking metal.

Assault swiftly moved back to back with his partner as the lockers continued rattling and clanging open and shut.

Until suddenly, they stopped, all at once, each and every locker freezing in mid swing.

Neither hero so much as breathed, and as nothing happened, they slowly eased their way out of their combat stances. And then they whirled as they heard a delicate cough from behind them.

The Hebert girl stood there, looking the same as when they first saw her, pink and purple striped ears and tail. She grinned at the two heroes, slightly elongated fangs peaking out from between her lips.

"Well, hello heroes. We're entering the end game, and you two will get to help decide the fate of our Alice and your fellow hero's."

The Cheshire striped-Taylors eyes seemed to flash a bright yellow for a moment before returning to their cat eyed brown color, her smile growing just that little bit wider as she took in the heroes discomfort.

"Wont that be _fun?_ "

Assault was about to speak when Cheshire pointed to something behind him, and he could hear the rush of gas, frowning, he turned to see an absolute tidal wave of purple fog about to roll down on him.

He braced himself, and the fog hit with the force of a freight train, bowling him and Battery over. When the fog finally cleared, he opened his eyes and found himself in a darkened room, lit only by a trio of spotlights focused on a central table with four chairs in the middle of the room, a white linen table cloth lending it an air of sophistication.

Two of the chairs were already occupied, and the occupants were like night and day.

The first chair was occupied by a duplicate Taylor, this one though, had hair that was straightened and fell to her mid waist, she wore a blue dress with a white pinafore, white stockings and black Mary Janes. But beyond all that, she was beautiful, eye catching, jaw droopingly beautiful, the kind of beauty that men and women would kill for.

Her eyes though… Her eyes were what really drew attention, solid orbs of ebony that were utterly without light, humor, or life.

The second was yet another Taylor, but this one, rather then the clean, artistic appearances of the other Taylors, was dirty, slightly off, her mouth was a little too wide, her hair mussed and greasy, her limbs a little to skinny to be healthy, she was dressed multiple layers of dirty discarded rags, each layer for dirty and off-putting then the last.

But like her counterpart, it was her eyes that really had all the attention. They were simple brown eyes, but they _sparkled_ with life, humor, and most breathtakingly of all, with hope.

Assault and Battery walked up to the table with the utmost care, but beyond a casual nod of greeting given by both Taylors, neither moved, neither so much as breathed.

Assault looked at Battery and shrugged, taking one of the seats, Battery waited for a few moments to see if there were any traps, and when there were none, sat in the chair beside him. The dual Taylors turned to gaze in one direction, from which glided Cheshire, perched behind a podium that glided up to a point just short of the table as though it was on ice.

Grinning Cheshire spoke, her eyes slightly glowing.

"Well hello all. We've finally arrived at the end of our little game. How Wonderland as a whole will act, is dependent on the outcome of this, _conversation._ "

Cheshire gestured at each Taylor in turn.

"These two Taylors represent the opposing viewpoints of Taylors psyche. Their goal, is to convince one or both of you to their point of view. Whoever gets you both to agree, or at least one more then the other wins, and the point of view will. Well. Lets just say we influence Taylor in more ways then just supplying her our powers to use."

Assault leaned forward.

"And if we both agree with a different person?"

Cheshire smirked and gestured, causing a vision of an unconscious and bound Triumph appeared in a whirl of purple smoke.

"Well, that would mean we go into sudden death, I don't think either of you want that, **do you**?"

Assault swallowed, a sudden lump in his throat as he shook his head and sat back against the chair. Cheshire smirked even harder before she began speaking.

"The first aspect," A gesture to the inhuman Taylor in the blue dress with the pinafore. "Is a manifestation of Taylors unremitting hatred, her grief over everything and everyone she's lost, and most of all, her utter disdain, and, I suppose, being absolutely done with humanity and everyone in it."

The first Taylor smirked, and inclined her head towards Assault and Battery as Cheshire gestured to the second Taylor at the table.

"The second aspect, is what remains of Taylor happiness, her love, and her hope for a life that gets better, one that isn't the unrelenting storm of misfortune that it is right now."

The second Taylor nodded, an expression of calm fixed onto her face. Cheshire calmly removed her head from her neck, before placing it onto the lectern. As Cheshires body dissolved into smoke, her head continued to speak.

"Each aspect gets three chances to speak, and then I will ask the heroes just who they think is right."

Cheshires eyes seemed to glow even brighter as they narrowed, staring at the two heroes.

"Of course they wont be able to lie, or avoid not answering while we are mid-game."

Cheshires heads smiled, and began to sing as the lights dimmed and the first aspect stood up.

"Everbody ready? Good. Now, on with the show."

 _'Twas Brillig_

 _And the slithy toves_

 _Did gyre and gimble in the wabe,_

 _All mimsy were the borogoves_

 _And the mome raths outgrabe.'_

 _'Twas Brillig_

 _And the slithy toves_

 _Did gyre and gimble in the wabe,_

 _All mimsy were the borogoves_

 _And the mome raths outgrabeee.'_

And as the lights died, the Cheshire Cat sang.

 _End of Assault and Battery prt 1_


	10. Chapter 10

_Assault, Battery, and Cheshire prt 2_

Battery blinked in the flash of renewed lighting that blasted the stage, the slight whine of overpowered electronic lights low and constant on the air. She glanced at her husband, who was staring enraptured at the stage.

Cheshire, the Taylor with with the purple and black striped ears and tail stepped forward, this time dressed to nines in well fitted suit, and with the deepened voice of an announcer declared,

"Well folks, we have for you tonight a special treat! Quite literally the fight of a lifetime! This is for all the marbles!"

With one dramatic, sweeping gesture, Cheshire pointed to one corner of the stage, from which out stepped the unnervingly perfect Taylor, a disturbing version of Alice, dressed in a copy of the same dress that the original Alice was reported to wear, her grin widening as the Dark Alice stepped forward, Cheshire continued.

"In this corner, we have the proverbial id, the dark side, you know all those times you were tempted to kill the boss, or to take a short drop and a sudden stop, well, this is it! The Dark Alice!"

The glaringly beautiful Alice took center stage, her face smoothed in to a careful non- expression, the likes of which wouldn't be amiss on the face of a porcelain doll. Cheshire just smirked wider as she seemed to glide backwards and out of the lights.

"Remember Alice, you have 15 minutes to speak, and then you're less… _polished_ counterpart speaks."

Alice nodded as Cheshire seemed to fade away into the background. She turned towards the heroes, and inclined her head the barest fraction of an amount, as though recognizing the heroes presence, and thanking them for that, but nothing else. She smoothed her powder blue dress for a long moment, her hands making a rasping sound against the antiquated fabric that made up the dress. And then she spoke, her voice, smooth, too smooth, too sweet. Like the taste of arsenic and sugar.

"Hello Heros. I am here to convince of my the rightfulness of my duty. Of my need to become the driving force behind our Taylors subconscious."

Alice spread her arms, palms out, a slight frown of disapproval on her face.

"Our Taylor has been though much over the past two years. Her mother passed away."

A ghostly, faded image appeared behind the still speaking girl. A faded woman, with fair features and long, curly brown hair and a matronly expression.

"And then, her father, the man who supposed to look after her, to help his daughter put herself back together after the death of his wife, and mother of his child, instead he fell apart, and drifted away, throwing himself into futile effort and pointless work that only served to prove just how useless of a man he really was!"

Another image materialized itself behind visage of manic perfection, a tired looking man, with a head of balding brown hair and glasses perched on a slightly growing nose, his body, thick with youthful vigor, going to seed slightly seed with age.

"And then, after she began the slow process of recovering herself, of building herself back together! Then her _friend._ "

And again, another image materialized behind her. This time a much younger girl, rather beautiful with red hair. What was strange, was her expression, it seemed to almost flicker between love, pity, adoration, scorn, and absolute _hatred._ Alice, the Darkest version of Taylor, becoming more, and more frenzied as she continued speaking, her gestures become ing more and more manic, the darkness seemed to pulse, shift and thrum.

"Her friend, someone who she had been _raised_ with, someone who she considered her sister in all but _blood,_ turned on her, and began a vicious program of assault, humiliation, and betrayal, every secret that our Taylor told her, revealed in the most hurtful way possible. Every little thing, every tradition held between the two, suddenly a dagger in the back!"

Suddenly, she froze on stage, her right arm held outstretched, fist clenched, but then, still standing stock still, her face smoothed away again, and her arms slowly fell to her sides, and then she took two steps forward, the lights brightening as she did, until the lights blinded Battery with a shout of discomfort, when she opened her eyes again, Alice was in front of her. Her eyes, sold chips of ebony that glinted and shown with an inner fire.

"But do you know the worst part?"

Assault and Battery both shook their heads, the cords of their muscles tightening as they prepared for a fight, twitching as their brains sent spikes of adrenaline through their body, Alice smiled. A smile that seemed to stretch wide over her face, from ear to ear, threatening to take off the top of her head as she continued speaking, her voice insanely calm.

"The worst part is that the worst offender of the lot, the one who beat, who poisoned, who tried to murder our Alice, is a _ward._ "

Batteries eyes widened as beside her, as Assault cursed.

Behind Taylor, another wraith manifested, this time, it was a young, black teen girl, her face screwed up into a rictus of hate and anger.

It was Sophia.

Battery couldn't help herself, a whisper escaped between her clenched lips.

"Oh _god_ …"

Alice spat to one side.

"God isn't here. Only _I_ am."

 _End of Assault, Battery, and Cheshire prt 2_


	11. Chapter 11

_Finale of Assault, Battery, and Cheshire_

Assault blinked as abruptly, where one of the versions of Taylor had been, was Cheshire instead, grin wide and fanged, and _unhinged._ This time she was wearing an extravagant, old fashioned ball gown that game down to just above her ankles. It had a significant bustle, towards the top of the dress, it was a beautiful purple that slowly darkened towards the bottom. The strangest thing of all, was unlike her previous appearances, this time Cheshire had none of her animal features other than her yellow cat eyes, but her dress… Her dress seemed to be a _lmost_ artificial, strange ruffles and threads coming out in places that lent an appearance of artificial fur.

"So, what did you think of that particular tidbit of information, _hmmm?_ "

Assault interposed himself between Battery and Cheshire his hands held up nonthrertiningly, but before he could speak, behind him, Battery snarled, offended on behalf of the organization she had spent the last decade of her life serving was being slandered.

"We didn't know! We had no way of knowing!"

One of Cheshires eyebrows quirked upward as her smile continued to widen, her lips becoming like cracks in thin ice, the danger that started to emanate from the fragment of Taylors personality was also similar, the spiking anxiety with every second that the situation see mingling worsened.

A moment, and then another of that mounting tension, and then a _pulse_.

Cheshire straightened up, took a couple of steps back, and then vigorously began shaking her arm, causing random objects, some of which were far to big to fit inside her sleeve to fall out and clatter to the ground, once she was done, Cheshire began chucking the objects one another at the heroes.

"Really? Not the records of the texts and calls she made to her so called compatriots?"

A cellphone, one of the ones issued to the Wards,

"Or the Emails that she sent, some which were from a school account, all of which detailed frankly disgusting things that Taylor supposedly did, or that she threatened to do to Taylor?"

A thrown laptop, that narrowly missed Assaults head before wedging itself in-between the theaters seat cushions.

"Or what about the dozen of anonymous tip-offs, detailing you psychotic wards multiple assaults and criminal acts."

With that, Cheshire lifted and tossed an entire payphone stand that sailed straight past the heroes and landed with a crash in the back of the theater. Before Cheshire could throw the next object Assault spoke, his voice rushed.

"We're sorry!"

Cheshire blinked, and the trash bags hoisted over one shoulder slipped out of suddenly frozen hands as a frown crossed over her face.

Without another word, she dropped the black bags and began sinking into the ground, the har flooring rippling like water as Cheshire sank into it.

Within a matter of moments, Cheshire was gone. Assault and Battery stared at the spot where Cheshire had disappeared. The heroes twitched as they heard a cough from back on stage, they jerked their head back to gaze up to the stage.

Standing in the spotlight in the middle of the stage was the dirty Taylor, who stood slightly hunched under an invisible weight. Clad in dirty, stained layers of clothing, she stood nevertheless.

As soon as the heroes were looking her way, the newest Taylor began speaking without preamble.

"I, am here to bec- to _advocate_ for Taylor become a hero. Not a hero for the Protectorate, since you have been a let down, almost universally, by your organization. Taylor, if she follows my example, will still be heroic, will still be emotional, and will still hold a grudge."

The neutral expression that had featured on her crooked, and slightly misshapen face became a frown, a frown that pulled at slightly more flexible flesh than should be possible, its consistency and look reminded the watching heroes of dirty flesh colored putty.

"I wont lie to you heroes. I, or rather she, will bear a grudge. But if I become the overarching drive behind our Alices decisions, she would be a hero. She would participate, and act, and change the world for the better by fighting evil and protecting those who cannot protect themselves, in the processes uncovering the enemies who have hidden behind their masks, and punishing them."

Assault and Battery exchanged a glance, it was one of those glances where a whole conversation was exchanged without saying a word. After a moment, Assault leaned forward.

"What would you do to the Wards and the Protectorate heroes, who, I hate to say it, but have failed you by not noticing ShadowStalkers actions from before now."

The Taylor on stage just sighed.

"Its far too late to salvage any opinions of you here. All thats left is wether you want there to be a change. Or for thing to stay the way they are. Terrible."

Assault shook his head, ignoring Battery's swift jab into his side as spoke, his

"Still. We screwed up. Wether or not its too late, we - _I_ at least, still need to to make amends. What can I do?"

Taylor shrugged, the dirty layers of clothing making the gesture far larger then her it should have naturally been. The quiet susurration of cloth against cloth, audible from where she stood on the stage.

"All you are too do at this point, is decide, me, or my other. Do you want a hero, or a non-entity?"

Abruptly, a massive column of purple spiraled down from above and engulfed the girl onstage, it swirled around, bulging and twisting as though a creature was trying to push through. Suddenly, the smoke collapsed, rushing out and overtaking both heroes.

When it cleared, Assault and Battery were standing in a mostly empty room. At the far end away from the two heroes were a pair of identical lockers, One with an indescribable smell coming from them, and a blackish-red filth leaking from the bottom crack, while the other was pristine.

The heroes suppressed a shriek as a set of arms threw themselves over their shoulders and the Cheshire Taylor stuck her head between them, a wide smile on her face. She stepped between them, this time. Cheshire was dressed in what looked like a furred bodysuit, with alternating purple and pink stripes that completely covered everything below her neck, and a flexing, coiling tail that gave every impression of being real.

Cheshire lazily blinked yellow eyes and smirked, slight fangs.

"You ready heroes? At the end of the hallway are both aspects of our dear Taylor, still imprisoned in the hell of a heroes making. Its your choice dear heroes, who to release, and who to keep entombed."

Cheshire twisted sideways in an odd movement that hurt assaults eyes to watch and disappeared, leaving the two heroes alone. The heroes glanced at each other whole conversations being held with mere shifts in body language, ending with Battery sighing in resignation, and Assault stiffening in righteous anger.

Finally, both heroes turned to the lockers, one pristine and almost unsettling in its normality, the other rotten and filthy, dripping with what looked like rotting blood.

Assault, his hand quivering with nerves, reached forward and undid the lockers latch.

 _End Of Arc 1_


	12. Chapter 12

_Hospitals and conversations_

Taylor woke up, to find herself staring directly into the eyes of an overweight woman who introduced herself as Director Emily Piggot, but after introducing themselves to each other, they had sort of stare down, where Piggot was obviously willing Taylor to talk, but the teen was both too intimidated, and too bewildered for any response, so instead they sat, for minutes, then half an hour, then a full hour of awkward shuffling movements, torpid gazes, and the slow constant whine of the hospital machines. The deadlock was eventually broken when another man opened the door into the hospital room and walked in. This man was actually rather short and dumpy, slightly balding, with a pair of wire rim glasses on his face that granted him a rather unfortunate beady eyed look.

In other words, he wouldn't be winning a beauty contests in the near future. Or really ever. More importantly however, his eyes did have a shrewd intelligence to them, they were constantly roving over every surface, and seemingly drank in everything. He walked over to the director before leaning down, whispering in her ear and handing her a small folder of papers, and without so much as a nod to Taylor, he left.

Piggot quickly opened and leafed through the folders contents, her face becoming more and more line with each page flipped until Taylor honestly wondered wether or not not she had just seen the other woman age than ten years in as many minutes. Piggot sighed and placed the papers on hospital table next to her, leaving her hand resting on top of the papers, she turned back to Taylor.

"Do you know what these papers are?"

Of course she didnt, how was she expected to know that? Either the Piggot woman was being rude and thoughtless… Or, and far more likely, she was testing Taylor for a Thinker ability.

She simply shook her head.

Piggot sighed and continued.

"Each one of these papers contains the after action report of an individual hero, and with the exceptions of Dauntless, Shadow Stalker, and strangely enough, of Miss Milita, they all call for the least punishment possible for you, which would most likely entail induction into the Wards, while at the same time, universally calling for the imprisonment of your tormentors."

There was a distinct pause as Piggot clearly worked out how to say something.

"I'd assume, based on the reports, you are aware of Shadow Stalkers real identity?"

Of course she was. After two years of torment, she would have been an idiot not to finally figure out that the black track star who continually mysteriously found her way around, or rather through her locked locker was the one Ward who rather famously didn't attend Arcadia. Again though, she didn't say that. She honestly didn't think shed said a single word the entire time the larger woman had been in the room.

So instead, she simply nodded again, a flicker of a scowl passing across her face that did not go unnoticed by the other woman in the room, or the dozens of people watching on the cameras that had hidden in almost every corner of the room.

Piggot suppressed the flicker of unease that shot through her stomach, of course that could have simply been her kidneys acting up again, but if she was being honest she hated this entire situation enough that it could have been either one, or both combined to make the unholy roiling sensation that was currently swimming through her gut. However, the fact that Hebert was aware of who Sophia was had been expected from the information from the reports, it just meant they had to go forward with their plan A.

"In that case,"

Piggot placed her hands on her knees, and bow at the waist while inclining her head, while still remaining seated.

"You have my sincere apologies Miss Hebert. I don't know how much you know about me, but the one thing that you should know, is that if I had any idea of what Hess was doing, I would have shot her myself, but that isn't an excuse, this was a failure of command, accountability, and communication at the most basic levels, and for that I once again, sincerely apologize and give you my word, that those responsible for it will not see the light of day again."

Piggot rose from his conciliatory posture and gazed at Taylor for a moment, giving the younger girl a change to respond. After a few moments of silence, Piggot continued speaking as if nothing had happened.

"And with that in mind, I would like to offer you something entirely unheard-of in the history of the PRT or the Protectorate. Essentially what I plan on offering you is the position of PRT supported independent hero. In other words, its similar to a PRT affiliate but we will provide you with more support, as well as training, supplies, and material, not to mention patrols will be changed so that you can be trained in procedures and tactics by any willing Wards and Protectorate members. What your getting would be all the benefits of being a Ward and Protectorate member along with the freedom of being an independent."

Piggot slipped a piece of paper out of the folder and rose. She calmly walked over to Taylors side table and placed in there.

It was the agreement form. From what Taylor could tell, it was incredibly simple, it laid out the terms, which included what benefits shed receive, as well as stipulations for the supports, which only amounted to a weekly check in with both a therapist and a Protectorate mentor.

Piggot gave one last nod as she walked out the door.

"Think about it. Your father will be in tomorrow to check on you."

 _Scene Break_

Chief Director Rebbeca Costa Brown nodded as she listened to the report coming in over the phone, after a quick good bye, she hung up and turned to the only other occupant in the room.

A woman in a fedora.

"Its done. Hebert was just offered the position, but you never said, why was it necessary to make up something like anyway, especially to a girl who probably won't except it?"

The woman in the fedora shrugged.

"If she accepts it, we have a direct method for keeping tabs on her, if she declines we have more information about her character and at least we can appear to have done all we can."

Costa Brown frowned.

"But, don't you know wether or not she'l accept?"

The woman in the fedora shrugged again.

"The path is odd when it comes to Hebert, at times a path hundreds of steps long is clear, at other times, it is merely a dozen steps long, and at others she is as unreadable as the endbringers."

 _End of Hospitals and Conversations_


	13. Chapter 13

_Tea Party - the Interlude_

In some unknowable place, at some strange time between the seconds, there was a table, and at that table sat madness.

Well, Madness, and _others_ …

Sat at the table was a girl with red hair, a long face, and long, stretched out, almost spider like limbs, dress in a black and green suit, large top hat, and massive face spanning smile. Sitting to either side of her, was a blond girl in a blue and white, blood spattered dress, and a girl wearing what seemed to be nothing but a furred bodysuit in shades of striped purple, even her hair had the same colored pattern.

The three girls held in their hands, a teacup, each one patterned after their clothing. The first girls teacup was a green ring at the top, then a larger ring of orange-red, then a strange arrangement of orange, purple, and green, that strangely enough, seemed to form what suggested a suit and tie. The second girl had a cup of blue, with a handle of white, and the dark red imprint of a pair of lips along its rim. The third girl had a cup of of bright white that shone with a pearly, oily sheen. On the inside though, it looked like it had been painted the deepest, filthiest black possible, that black that seeps out from rotted waste, that black of a wound gone rotten and septic.

All three girls made sound of audible enjoyment, and despite the cups being dry as a bone, liquid sloshing and sipping sounds were being made as the cups made their way too lips.

After a while, all three girls placed their cups back onto tables with an audible sigh of enjoyment, and leaned back in their chairs, the moments in eerie synch.

After a long while, finally, the girl in black and green leaned forward.

"Very well, I call this order of the subconscious into order."

The girl in blue scoffed and spat to one side.

"Hah! I do not understand why we have these meetings, relegated as we are to the afterlife, we have no control over her actions, we can merely whisper, and not even whispers can overcome her conscious."

The one in purple leaned forward, and _smirked_ , **_its_** mouth seemed to stretch just behind its ears.

"But what if, and consider it if you will, there was a way for her conscious to be supplanted?"

Both heads snapped to girl in purple, who's teeth just seemed to sharpen.

"If we play our cards right we won't be playing telepathic telephone forever, soon, there will be four possibilities for our will to overcome the consciousness, the dragon, the snake, the monster and the maze will be our chances."

"And if we fail at those?"

"Then we remain consigned to the dark forever."


	14. Chapter 14

_The Snake bites_

Coil sat in his office lair, and with a quiet breath out, and just like that, reality split.

 _Reality A_

Coil phoned his team of mercenaries and ordered them into position, pending his word. Two dozen highly trained killers with tinker tech weaponry, but he had to admit. Coil didn't know if they'd be enough.

 _Reality B_

 _Come Along by Cosmo Sheldrake_

Coil called his Tattletale and gave the go ahead. They were to infiltrate, capture, and retreat with the asset.

 _Tattle tale - B_

Lisa shivered as she put the phone away and gave a nod to Bryan, who returned the nod tersely. The job they were on now, kidnapping, it didn't sit well with the principled guy, but in the end, the bait Coil was dangling in front of him was too much.

She sighed as she polished of the last minute touches.

Family really was quite the lever wasn't it?

 _Scene Break_

The Undersiders had arrived at the hospital, Grue's darkness sweeping through the hospital floor by floor as they made their way up, leaving unconscious and tased guards, staff and civilians, anyone who might have delayed their exit by more the a second.

They arrived, a mere five minutes entering the hospital to the door of their target. Tattletale opened the door, which swung open in one long, slow, smooth motion, there was a split second when tattletale could have sworn that there was a girl with purple striped fur on the bed, almost like a purple shaded Siberian.

But instead there was just a slim girl, sitting in the bed, the Undersiders froze as her head slowly turned in their direction, revealing plain, slightly crooked features, that turned into a something that Lisa vaguely remembered from a late night horror movie that Regent had once conned her into watching, all sharpened teeth and no lips or gums, that slowly stretched all the way back to, and then straight past her ears.

Then, well, It was almost like the hyperdrive affect in one of those earth aleph films, Lisa noted in what was probably abject and detached terror, as stars appeared and stretched, and suddenly, she was somewhere else.

 _Scene Break_

Coil shrieked in pain as reality A was forcibly shut down. He hissed in pain as he gave his mercenaries the order to kidnap the girl, not even thirty minutes later, he received a confirmed capture from his mercenaries, he had to wonder at the ease a dozen mercenaries had that a quarter dozen parahumans didn't.

The possible complications of power interactions?

He didn't know. Couldn't know. But he'd be dammed if he'd wouldn't find out, of course, Thomas could fight the sneaking suspicion that he would be, even if he did.

 _Scene Break_

Blue ideally branched through future after future as her sphere grew larger. Soon another side would come forth, but for now, her fellows were allowing her the freedom she needed to examine the twining threads of the future as they presented themselves through the smoke.

Many were terrible. Taylor or one of the aspects dying, other featured one of the darker parts rampaging, killing dozens, even hundreds of heroes and villains before finally being killed. In others the prime would consume the alternates, and in some would go insane, in other would become a great power, either villain or hero.

But that wasn't what the majority desired, they desired an equilibrium. An equality between parts that was still difficult to achieve, but, if she had her way, they would.

 _Scene Break_

There was a man, we shall call him mercenary A, or A for short. A was not a particularly good man, he worked for any employer for money, more or less depending on the job, he'd killed men, women, and children, and he'd do so again for a price.

He'd even enjoyed some of it, not that he'd admit to anyone else but himself.

But nevertheless, he'd only killed his first without getting paid for it. Now, A was working for a super villain, a literal bond-type super villain, it was something out of his comfort range, but the pay was good, and the jobs were actually usually safe, working with other skilled operators that the boss had hired, the job they were on now was the kidnapping and rendition of a one Taylor Hebert, who was supposedly some kind of incredibly powerful parahuman, he couldn't see it himself, since she had sank down like a sack of dead puppies to the bottom of the river when he'd shot her with the tranquilizer.

And now since he'd been the one to take her down, he was having to keep watch on her sleeping form.

He coughed idly as he considered the skinny teens sleeping form.

He didn't know what his employer was going to do with her, and he wasn't sure he cared.

A coughed harder, so hard he felt like he had just coughed out a lung, his ribs rattling with the force of it.

He had something _stuck_ in his throat, he coughed again and again, trying to get rid of whatever it was, he could feel it almost out of his throat, but it was like it had _hooks_ …

Gagging and coughing he reached fingers into his throat, and managed to hook one finger around whatever was stuck in his throat.

Out and out it came, a long cord of purple and white hair… Or was it _fur?_

Out it came, longer and longer, making a coiled pile of saliva slicked fur on the ground, and then he came to a head, _literally_.

A could feel his jaw widen, cracking, shattering and popping apart as a head, and then the rest of a body came out, it flopped wetly to the ground, a slim girl with purple striped fur of different shades.

A girl that stretched out the kinks in her limbs slowly, joints, one after the other popping and cracking in sequence as she came to her feet. The girl ignored the whimpering mercenary on the floor who was cradling his shattered jaw as she continued to stretch, arching her back, and then tracing long fingers from her wrists, to her arms, to her chest, to her thighs, and finally to her toes.

Finally she turned to look at the mercenary, smiling widely and with far too many teeth.

In a blur, the furred girl sat astride A's hips, smiling wide, she leaned in close to his ear and whispered,

"When you wake up, do ask yourself, how do you run from what's inside your head?"


End file.
